VERONICA

I try to eat a bite of the jerky-kibble, but it falls from my lips and into the fire as Ashtar storms away. Dude looks pissed. My head still smarts from where I cracked it against his jaw, and I rub it absently, getting crumbs in my hair. I wonder if I should go after him. He gave me the most heart-wrenching look before striding away, and I feel a little guilty, as if I'm somehow responsible for his bad mood.

One of the blue guys sits down next to me and offers his waterskin. "Drink."

"Um, okay." I take it and have a tiny sip. I guess now isn't the time to talk about hygiene or sharing. Maybe it's not a concern on a primitive planet. "Thank you."

"Is the gold one bothering you?" He gives me a steady look. "Say the word and I will ensure he does not come near you again."

"No, he was nice." I hand back the waterskin. "He liked my smell." I opt not to tell this guy about the whole “want to mate” conversation we had. "I think he's just trying to be friendly."

The alien grunts as if he doesn't quite believe that and passes the waterskin to Bridget. "I am a father and a hunter both, and when he says he only wishes to be friendly, I do not believe such words."

"What did you say your name was again?" I ask politely. I remember this guy from yesterday, with the messy braid and the paternal frown on his face.

"I am called Zolaya." He stirs the fire. "And you are Ron-ka and she is Bree-shit."

At my side, Bridget coughs on her jerky. "Bridge-IT. Jesus Christ."

"Bree-shit," he agrees again, as if his pronunciation is fine.

I do my best not to laugh, but it's hard. "So, you have kids, Zolaya?"

"I have a son, and my mate, Air-ee, is carrying our second kit." His expression softens, and I see a hint of wistfulness in his glowing eyes. "They are back at our village." He looks at me. "Which is where I should be. But since I am here, I am going to make sure the unmated males do not bother you. You and Bree-shit will be as my own kits."

"Bridget, dammit," the girl next to me exclaims.

"That's very nice," I choke out, determined not to look at Bridget or I'm going to laugh.

He nods solemnly. "Simply come find me if you feel unsafe. He may be another hunter, but I will plant a spear in his tailless hide if he tries to hurt you." He pats me on the shoulder and then goes off to find others.

And I'm left with breakfast and wondering what Ashtar truly wants after all. Zolaya is convinced that he's got something up his sleeve. But what? There are much prettier girls here. Unless…he thinks I'm an easy lay. Suddenly the breakfast in my mouth tastes like char and I close the pouch.

I don't see Ashtar again until we're herded out of the ship itself for the big “hunt” that will get us our cooties. There's a creature with a name that sounds like gargling that will apparently have all the cooties we need, and so most of the hunters race off to bring it down, while Liz, Harlow, Farli and two of the guys herd all of us down the ramp. Someone carries the struggling, snarling beast-man over his shoulder, but everyone else walks. I'm a little mystified when Ashtar heads to the front of the group and strides ahead, scanning the horizon. He's not paying a bit of attention to me.

I shouldn't care. I shouldn't. But for a brief shining moment, it was nice to be the center of attention, even if it embarrassed the crap out of me. I guess Ashtar switched gears and isn't all that interested in me. To take my mind off the bitter cold and the knee-deep snow we're wading through to get to the hunting grounds, I study my fellow humans to see who might be a likely candidate for his attentions.

Of all the girls, I think Samantha is the prettiest. Maybe Callie or Devi, but Devi is an absolute chatterbox and I don't see Ashtar liking that. The girl called Lauren has brown hair like me and squints a lot, as if she can't see, so I'm guessing not her. Marisol's too cowardly. Hannah's bossy and I already know he doesn't like her. Angie's pregnant. Willa's pretty in a blonde, freckled sort of way. Maybe her. Or Nadine, who has the most gorgeous dark skin and a beautifully full mouth. I could see him going after her. Tia's really pretty, too, but she's also a few years younger than the rest of us and the thought of someone creeping on her makes me uncomfortable. Penny's pretty, though. Flordeliza, too, though I tell myself she's far too tiny for him to like. Raven's tall and slim (and blonde, despite her name), and Steph's less pretty but has an amazing curvy figure that would make Marilyn Monroe envious. Maybe Bridget. I look over at my friend. Her hair's dark and her skin's that golden color that speaks of mixed ethnicity, but her eyes are a gorgeous hazel. She really is pretty.

And he let her sleep curled up next to him last night despite the whole “not you” thing. Definitely a candidate.

Stack-ranking my fellow humans makes me feel like a jerk, though, and my self-esteem feels like it just took a beating. Really, all the girls here are better choices than me. Like Devi. Yes, she talks up a storm—she's talking even now—but she's got the most amazing long, silky hair and she's incredibly smart. If we're just going on appearances, her tits are better than mine, too.

I don't fall anywhere at the top of the rankings no matter how you look at it—personality, appearance, sex appeal…I'm solidly in the back of the pack in each one.

That's depressing.

We trudge on, and just when I think I can't take another step (back of the pack on stamina, too, it seems), we're there. Off in the distance, the blue aliens fling themselves at an enormous, spindly-legged furball of a creature that's bellowing and bleeding everywhere. I wince and wrinkle my nose, doing my best not to look as everyone gathers under a nearby cluster of trees and waits.

"Did you see that thing?" Bridget whispers, pushing past me. "I want to get a better look."

"I'll stay back here," I tell her, swallowing hard. There's a lot of blood and I'm not sure I want to see more of it spilled. I cross my arms over my chest, tucking my gloves under each armpit to warm my fingers. My breath puffs like a smokestack out in the air, and I shift back and forth on each foot impatiently. Did I think it was cold yesterday? It's a frost-bitten hell today.

At least I'm not the only cold one. Liz and the other “guides” are keeping an eye on the hunting and everyone else mills around, bitching about the weather.

"Do you need warming?" a familiar voice says, so close to my ear that I feel hot breath fan over my hair.

I gasp in surprise, jerking away and nearly stumbling into the person standing in front of me. A hand snags me before I can topple over, and I give Ashtar a grimace. "Sorry. I seem to be falling over a lot lately."

"Then it is lucky I am here to catch you." He helps me stand upright. "Are you cold?"

"Isn't everyone?" I gesture at my fellow humans, and everyone's doing the foot-stomping dance in the snow to try and generate heat. No one's looking at us, though. At some point I fell to the back of the group and the creature up ahead bellowing its death throes has everyone's attention.

Everyone except me, that is. Because I'm too busy trying to sneak a peek at the golden god that's appeared at my side. Even though I've told myself that I need to be less fixated on the guy, I'm flattered he's shown up to say hello. As I watch, he shrugs off his outer layer of furs and tugs it over my shoulders. Ashtar studies me for a moment. "Shall I put my hands on you?"

"Pardon?" I squeak.

"For warmth?"

Right. Warmth. That's certainly what I'm thinking about. "No, I'm okay. I swear." Well, okay-ish. I'm not an icicle yet, but I'm sure I will be, given time. "So, uh, what do you think of all this?"

"Of this place?" He snorts and puts his hands on his hips, surveying the area with that arrogant stance I'm starting to attribute as just part of who he is. "It is worse than a week in the sands of Sehiv, and I thought that place was bad." He shakes his head. "But if there are no slavers here, then I suppose there are worse places." He glances over at me. "You?"

"Yeah, uh, same." When he mentions slavers, I feel kind of like a baby whining about a bit of cold. I've completely forgotten that we were kidnapped from Earth to be used as sex slaves. Suddenly, all this snow looks a hell of a lot more appealing. "We're lucky, aren't we?"

"I feel lucky." He grins at me, displaying sharp fangs, and a little quiver races through me at the sight of that. His eyes are whirling a deep, intense gold and he cocks his head, studying me. His eyes narrow as if he's concentrating.

For some reason, I feel a sharp pain in my head, like the onset of a migraine. It flashes away as quickly as it appeared, and I wince, rubbing my brow with cold fingers.

Ashtar's eyes widen. "Can you hear me?"

"Hear what?"

He frowns, an absent look on his face. "Nothing. Merely a wish."

Before I can ask what he means by that, there's a bellowing cry in the distance.

"That's our cue," Liz calls out. "Everyone step up! Time to get your cootie."

I surge forward, nearly falling forward again. This deep snow is messing me up, hard. As if expecting this, Ashtar snags me by the arm. "Let me help."

I nod and let him put his arm around my waist. It must be awkward for him, because he's a lot taller than me, but he doesn't protest. If anything, he looks pleased as punch.

A humming sound wakes me out of my sleep. I yawn, rubbing my ear and rolling over. Stupid alarm. I want to go back to sleep.

Snow crunches under my cheek and that makes me open my eyes. Huh? A second later, it all comes surging back. Ice planet. Aliens. Kidnapping.

Bronze god o' love.

I put a hand to my throat, remembering the cut placed there. It feels like only moments ago that I watched someone put a wriggling, glowing worm up against my skin. Then…nothing. I woke up here and I'm shivering so hard that my entire body is shaking.

I roll onto my back, rubbing my eyes. It's quiet, the distant crackle of a fire nearby the only noise other than my loud shuddering. I blow on my hand to warm it, but to my surprise…it doesn't feel cold. Not like before. That's odd. I open and shut my mouth a few times, testing it, but my teeth aren't chattering. The snow under my body feels a little chilly, but not unpleasant.

Certainly not unpleasant enough to make my entire body hum with shivers. I put a hand to my chest, since it's where the humming is originating from. Wait. I'm not shivering.

Oh no.

What was it the others said about the cootie? That it'd pick a mate for me and we'd have to make babies? That I'd…resonate? That's the word. I think I must be resonating, because now that I'm becoming more alert, it's less of a shudder in my body and more of a reverberation. A song, I guess, if you're into drum beats and humming.

But who am I humming to?

I sit upright slowly, blinking at the encampment. The other girls are still laid out, unconscious. All seems to be quiet. A few of the blue guys pace distantly, watching over the campsite. I eye them with worry. One of those guys? But it can't be—they all have mates already.

Snow crunches nearby. I turn and look over my shoulder. There's Ashtar. His eyes shine a fierce blue for a moment before gold surges into them and fights for dominance. It flicks back and forth, as if internally warring. He's wearing nothing but a loincloth again and crouches down next to me.

As he does, I notice he's humming.

"Oh no," I moan.

The expression on his face can only be called “utterly delighted.” "Oh yes."